The Plague Dogs (1983)

To me, this movie is perfection.

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

It's from the director of 'Watership Down' so that should give you an idea of what you're in for. If you want to let your kids know what a dark, horrible and hostile place the world can be: let them watch this film (or Watership down). If you want them to be ignorant, happy saps who think the world is a colorful place where nothing bad can happen and everything will turn out okay let them watch a Disney flick. But I guess it can't hurt to see both sides, that'll teach 'em realism instead of naive positivism right. I admire that they didn't water down the film just to reach a larger audience. Unfortunately this second movie is also the last one this direct ever made.

The Plague Dogs... it's kind of hard to describe why this film is so good, because of all the things it manages to execute to near perfection.The animation, for it's time, is amazing, especially seeing that Martin Rosen's approach to this and "Watership Down" (another great) was to make the world and the animal characters in it seemingly realistic to a key (to an awkward point, when they draw out the dogs "package"). Nonetheless, the settings are dreary and threatening for our characters Rowf and Snitter (voiced by John Hurt, who also voiced Fifer in Watership Down) to traverse, and both the animals and even the humans are very well done.Such a provocative story as well, one that makes this more of an adults film rather than a children's (given a PG-13 rating for a few bloody reasons). The relationship between Rowf and Snitter is done brilliantly, and though I've never read the actual book, the way these two characters work with one another and each others self-conflicting emotions (Rowf's cynical yet determined will to survive, Snitter's intellect but often driven mad by his past misdeeds and being "cursed") to survive the harsh brutal world they escaped to is phenomenal. Even the characters they come to interact with (the sheep herders two collies, and "Tod" the fox) play their parts in helping these two find their way to freedom, though they may not actually be helping. Tod in particular is a fittingly cunning fox, and while he is helping these dogs for his own gain, he comes to a point in his life that he puts aside his own selfish thieving gain and sacrifices himself for the two. In the end, after enduring long and treacherous times in the wilds of Scotland, pursued by hunters for slaughtering sheep, and believed to be ridden with a "plague" from the cruel lab they escaped from, they come to the end of their journey. The film ends on a very sad (or if you choose) uplifting note, depending on how you interpret the ending of their story, whether or not they survived in the end. It may leave you with a mixed feeling, but the overall journey with Rowf and Snitter and everything in between makes this one of the greats in animation.Reasons this film is mainly geared more for adults isn't just for the enthralling story and the end result, it especially touches base with the issue of animal cruelty (most expressed in the beginning of the film, where Rowf is forced day by day to undergo endless swimming sessions of "endurance", drowning in the end and being revived by the humans to be put through the torture once more). Though I can't put my finger on what they did to Snitter, but it severely messed with his personal mind, causing his terrible imagery of his past, which in my mind delves even deeper on what terrible things we've done to animals simply for the sake of "what will happen." Say what you will about the issue, but I don't uphold animal cruelty on any level, but I wouldn't put a human first in line to be tested by a drug or treatment before it's proved foolproof. Wherever you stand on the issue, this film still manages to prove its point well, and makes you think about the aspects of animal experimentation/cruelty in labs.To top it off with dark story elements, such as the dogs trying to revert to the "wolf" ways to kill to survive, and bloody details of injuries, attacks on both animals and humans (one in particular that Snitter did not mean the cause may very well scar you for life), "The Plague Dogs" never ceases to amaze in my eyes.This film is definitely one to see at least once in your life, and many times thereafter if you truly grasp what the film attempts to evoke to its audience. Definitely in my top 10 favorite films (not just animated) of all time (alongside "The Iron Giant" of course).9/10 Jeffrey V/sonicfan5715

It has been estimated that from ten to one hundred million animals are used annually for research purposes. In the U.S., any procedure can be performed on an animal if it can be successfully argued that it is scientifically justified. Whether medical and scientific discoveries of benefit to mankind outweigh animal cruelty and likely death is a debate that has been going on since testing and experimentation on living animals began in Greece in the fourth century BC and shows no signs of abating. This subject is the theme of Martin Rosen's animated film The Plague Dogs.Based on the novel by Richard Adams who also wrote "Watership Down," The Plague Dogs is a disturbing movie that pulls no punches and is heartbreakingly real in its depiction of the sad effects of animal experimentation. Whether or not children should see it is a decision that has to be made by each parent. Walt Disney, it is not. In the film, a black Labrador named Rowf (John Hurt) and a fox terrier Snitter (Christopher Benjamin), subjected to endless tests of endurance as well as undefined brain surgery, make a daring escape from an animal research facility in Coniston, but find the outside world less welcoming than they remember.With no specific destination in mind, the two wander through the English Lake District hoping to find a master that will take care of them (Snitter is racked with guilt, thinking he caused the death of his previous master in an accident). In this bleak environment depicted in dark colors, their search for food and shelter is aided only by a sly, opportunistic fox (The Tod) who teaches the dogs the ways of the wild, mostly for his own benefit. As more and more sheep are reported killed, the research center spreads the rumor that the dogs may be carriers of the Bubonic Plague and the farmers are now assisted by the Army to hunt them down. Snitter does not help their cause by being involved in a freak shooting accident that kills a passerby.Though the mood of The Plague Dogs is somber and the film is marred by heavy British accents that are barely audible, the film is strengthened by the loving relationship of the two dogs and we root for them to survive even though we know the odds are against them. While the dogs are puzzled by the actions of the "whitecoats," they do not succumb to thoughts of revenge. Trying not to think the worst of their whitecoat tormentors, Rowf asks "There must be some reason, mustn't there? It must do some sort of good," but the good is hard to find as the dogs must confront insurmountable obstacles to find a way to survive. Like many of us who are trying to keep our heads above water, their island is so close but so far away.

Came across this one randomly on Netflix. I'm a huge animation fan, both of silly stuff like Bugs Bunny or Animaniacs, but also of more serious toned animation ranging from Batman to Ghost in the Shell or Jin-Roh. That being said I was instantly drawn to The Plague Dogs. I struggled with whether or not I should watch it, having an incredibly soft heart for animals, and dogs are held very high in my heart. Doing some reading about the film and the story, I decided to go through with it.I've watched a ton of films, some great, some decent, and a ton of schlock. The Plague Dogs rates for me as brilliant. I won't go into a ton of details about the plot. Two dogs who are subjected to scientific experiments with cruel overtones by chance manage to escape. They have different backgrounds, and different demons. They escape what for them is hell...only to be in the wilderness of the English countryside with no idea how to survive.There is no false hope given here, and from the start we are looking at an existence that knows no happiness. It does not start well. It never gets to a 'better' place, and it ends in a way that is crushing (at least for me and from what I've read here for others too). It is not a film for young children, not because of objectionable material, but because it is an adult story. At 29 years old, I was left in tears, both when I watched it and the day after. It leaves an impression, one that a young child would probably not be able to understand.It is wonderfully acted, beautifully drawn, and will speak to you in a haunting way if you let it. I don't feel that the film is specifically pro-animal rights or has anything of a hardcore specific agenda. It is a story that quite frankly would not be as interesting with humans at the focus. A great and powerful experience doesn't have to be uplifting or happy. Brace yourself for a beautifully sad journey, one certainly worth taking.